IT isn’t often that a shire council gives people the opportunity to tell it like it is, but fire-affected people do exactly that in this account of the Kian Road Fire.

EIGHTH NOVEMBER: The Kian Road Fire 2019 by Carrolline Rhodes captures the lived experience of that fire, its aftermath and the Nambucca Valley Council community’s response.

“I am privileged to have walked in the shoes of those affected by the Kian Road Fire and I present this account to the people of the Nambucca Valley with pride and humility,” said author Carrolline Rhodes.

“I began by contacting the people I already know who had been affected by the fire and they said “you should speak to so-and-so” which proved to be a gentler way of being able to speak to others.

“Word gradually went around.

“A couple of people told me afterwards that they hadn’t wanted to speak to me but said, now they’re glad they did.

“What I’ve learned is the most important thing with trauma is for people to be heard.”

Unobtrusively Carrolline put their stories together as a collaborative writer.

“The experience certainly affected me – I cried at every interview, with them.

“I came to realise one of the most important things as a community is to share our stories.

“We have so many connections.”

Another interesting thing was the post fire reactions people shared.

“One person told me, ‘It’s really weird, but you know when you lose your thread it usually comes back, but it’s just gone now’ and I could tell them ‘so-and-so’ had told me the same thing.

“It’s a commonalty that brought them together.”

The Kian Road fire devastated more than 27,000 thousand hectares in the Nambucca Valley.

At least 52 homes were lost, many livestock killed, fences ruined, wildlife devastated.

The book launch will take place on Saturday 1 May at 4.00pm at the Macksville Ex-Services Club.

Books will be available for sale on the evening.

 

By Andrea FERRARI